The Quill Awards

The Quill Awards nominated and chose some very impressive winners this year. Go here for a complete list of winners, and on their side-bar you can click the individual categories to see which works were nominated but did not win. Some impressive work showcased in the nominees sections as well.

I’m very pleased that America: The Book by Jon Stewart and the writers of the Daily Show won. There aren’t many books that are as smart as they are funny, but America definitely displays an intelligence that matches, and in come cases surpasses the humor. The audiobook won as well, as it should have. Even if you buy the book, you’ll want to get the audiobook, too. There’s just nothing like Jon, Stepehen C., Rob Corddry, and Samantha Bee reading the material they wrote. Download it from iTunes”¦it’s the easiest way to get it.

Christopher Moore won in the Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror category for his novel The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror.Really funny book. I can’t think of another novel which boasts of characters like a drunken Santa Claus, an idiotic Angel named Raziel, a broadsword wielding-half-crazy-usually-naked-ex-actress named Molly, and loads of brain hungry zombies. Plus, you can’t go wrong with a novel that has chapter headings like: “Your Puny Worm God Weapons Are Useless Against My Superior Christmas Kung Fu.”

Neil Gamian won the graphic novel category for 1602, an amazing re-imagining of the Marvel Universe. I was amazed at the level of knowledge of the 17th century that Neil displayed in the book, and the artwork is absolutely breathtaking. Like much of Neil’s work there always exists a sense of playfulness between the characters and their knowledge of the fourth wall that separates them from the reader. “We are a boatful of monsters and miracles, hoping that, somehow, we can survive a world in which all hands are against us. A world which, by all evidence, will end extremely soon. Yet I posit we are in a universe which favours stories. A universe in which no story can ever truly end; in which there can be only continuances.” An excellent book.

Best Book of the Year went to J.K Rowling for her novel “After Thatcher: A Novel of the Proletariat in Modern England.” Nah”¦just kidding. It’s Harry Potter, of course.